Jorge Jesus highlights the importance of keeping a grip on first place after win against Estoril

Speaking at the final whistle after watching Sporting open up a five-point lead at the top of I Liga, Jorge Jesus highlighted his side's recent defensive performances, having only let in two goals in the last five encounters.

“There were some tough periods tonight, with Estoril creating problems like we thought they would. When a team is in first, it is normal to have games like this one, but I thought the lads showed that they knew what to do and took the right decisions. Sometimes it looks like we are taking one touch too many, but that is how we have been training. Estoril positioned themselves well defensively, but we fixed some things in the second-half and improved. We had more opportunities and wasted some chances on open goal. The most important factor was that we didn't concede, because we are strong defensively. That is what won us this game", opened the Alvalade boss in a flash interview.

In parallel, Jesus spoke about the importance of winning after last week's 3-0 derby win: “It was important to win after the match in Estádio da Luz, because every match is worth three points. Today we had 40 thousand people in the stadium and that is a sign of the fans' confidence in us. It was important to stay top of the league, because if we think it was hard to get where we are then it will be even harder to stay there, but that is what makes champions."